


Lunch Time With Ronan

by noahczerns, pynch



Series: Lynch Brothers [3]
Category: Raven Cycle - Maggie Stiefvater
Genre: M/M, Not Incest, Other, ronan is a bad influence?????
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-10-21
Updated: 2015-10-21
Packaged: 2018-04-27 03:24:21
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,062
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5031889
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/noahczerns/pseuds/noahczerns, https://archiveofourown.org/users/pynch/pseuds/pynch
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Matthew eats lunch with Ronan, Gansey, and Adam. It results in Gansey almost having a heart attack, but a lot of kicking occurs before that.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Lunch Time With Ronan

**Author's Note:**

> As always, this fic was created by two authors.

Ronan had not looked up from his phone the entire class period, which struck his classmates as unusual considering they had hardly ever seen him with a phone, let alone using one. His eyes were glued to the dim screen, his fingers aching from the speed they were moving. The person on the other side of the phone was a fast texter; Matthew Lynch, Ronan’s baby brother. Or younger brother, since it was clear Matthew was no longer a baby. Though his cheeks still held baby fat, it was obvious Matthew had grown up. He had gotten taller and the slight difference between his height and Ronan’s was becoming increasingly smaller. Although, this wasn’t saying much--Ronan was rather short in size. Sometimes Ronan wished Matthew was still the little boy he was not even three years ago; the little boy that ran into Declan’s bedroom with him at the first sign of lightning. Partly because the relentless teasing about his height hadn’t begun yet. But there was no use in wishful thinking, something Ronan learned a long time ago. He glanced over at Adam as he thought this. 

Once the bell had rung, signaling the end of the class period, Ronan stood up and grabbed the notebook he usually kept for all his classes. Gansey chastised him for it daily, telling Ronan that he would get his subjects mixed up. Ronan had snorted; as if he took notes for any of his subjects. He folded the notebook up and tucked it into his back pocket, similar to what construction workers did with their blueprints. Ronan thought about that with a small smirk, only stopping when Adam elbowed him. 

“Ready to go?” he asked, not waiting on Ronan’s answer before he was slipping out of the classroom, getting lost in the gathering crowd. Ronan kept up with him easily, pushing anyone who dared stayed in his way, though most people stepped aside as soon as they saw him. Soon, Ronan was walking side by side with Adam, arms crossed over his chest and lips set in a straight line. It was a silent warning to those around them. 

They arrived at the cafeteria within minutes, Gansey already sitting at their usual table. He was in a heated discussion with Matthew, who stared at him with wide eyes, his mouth slightly open with awe. Ronan suspected Gansey was telling him about Glendower and sighed, he didn’t need his brother obsessed with him too. When Gansey saw Ronan and Adam, he waved frantically, then motioned them over. Matthew leaned over the table to be able to see them past Gansey’s arms. “Ronan! Hey!” he called, his voice loud in the not-so-crowded cafeteria. 

Ronan narrowed his eyes at the table of boys who sniggered, their laughter ceasing immediately after receiving his glare. Shaking his head, Ronan strode over to their table, grabbing the notebook from his pocket and dropping it onto the table. He did this more out of habit than anything else, he knew he wasn’t going to be looking at any notes now or anytime in the future. The sound of the notebook hitting the marble table had echoed around the cafeteria; Ronan had to make sure his presence was announced to those around him, whilst Adam quietly slipped into the seat beside him.

“You won’t believe what Gansey just told me,” Matthew gushed, all but bouncing in his seat. Ronan glanced down at the tray in front of him; it looked about ready to fall on the floor. Ronan carefully pushed it aside to prevent that from happening, then gave Gansey a look, who held up his hands in surrender. His hair seemed messy, which meant he had been stressed in one of his classes. Probably over Glendower rather than the class itself. When Gansey was nervous, he ran his hands through his hair as well as grazing his thumb over his bottom lip. 

“It had nothing to do with what you are thinking,” Gansey said, fixing the glasses perched on his nose. “He was talking about a comic book Declan bought him the other day, and I simply told him back at my home, I had plenty of comics. Marvel comics, too, since that seems to be what he’s most interested in.” As if he were confirming what Gansey said, Matthew nodded his head quickly, curls flopping as he did so. 

Ronan raised his eyebrows in disbelief. He couldn’t imagine a Gansey that read comic books, especially comic books about superheroes. “Since when do you read comics?” When he glanced over at Adam, it looked like he was trying to hold back an amused smile. They seemed to have been thinking the same thing. 

“I started reading them when I was a child. I don’t know exactly, seven or eight maybe. Anyway, it was a purely innocent matter.” Gansey reassured him and Ronan relaxed a little. He didn’t want Matthew to be caught up in the whole sleeping kings thing. He knew he couldn’t protect him from much, but he could protect him from this. 

“So how was your class?” Matthew asked before taking a bite of his sandwich, wanting to change the subject before Gansey retold his speech on Marvel. It wasn’t like he didn’t care about what Gansey had to say, but he wanted to talk to his brother more. Though Matthew sees Ronan in the hallways and sometimes after school, they hadn’t had a conversation for a long time. Or at least, that’s what it felt like to Matthew, who talked to his other brother everyday. He wished it was the same with Ronan. 

“Oh, it was /so/ great.” Ronan replied sarcastically, smiling at the chuckle it evoked from Matthew. He felt a kick to his ankle from beneath the table and turned to his left to see the disgruntled look on Adam’s face. Ronan knew how much Adam valued his education, but it didn’t mean that he had to as well, and he didn’t. Ronan didn’t plan to further elaborate his education after high school. 

Adam rolled his eyes. “Yes, class /was/ great. Thanks for clarifying, Ronan.” He flicked his gaze to Ronan again before returning it to Matthew. “How was yours? Did you learn a lot?” Ronan admired that they could hold a genuine conversation about class since he could barely stand being in one. It also pleased him to know that Adam took an interest in how Matthew was doing, so much so that he had to scrunch up his nose to stop from smiling. 

“I learned that Ronan can actually spell instead of just using texting language,” Matthew answered, dimples showing as he gave Ronan a teasing smile. “But yes, I learned something. I can’t remember what it was that I learned though.” A small frown pulled at his lips, but he waved his hand dismissively before grabbing the slice of pizza off his tray. Pizza was his favorite food, and he often convinced Declan to call in a pizza for dinner. His older brother complained about Matthew’s poor eating habits, but that’s usually all he did; complain. He never tried stopping him, though he always threatened to. Matthew grinned at Adam around a mouthful of pizza. 

Adam shook his head. There was no use telling Ronan to stop texting Matthew during class since he would never listen to him anyway. Ronan smirked over at Adam when he felt his annoyance, then leaned forward to grab a potato wedge from Matthew’s tray. Since he wasn’t a fan of potatoes, Matthew offered him the rest, to which Ronan took them gratefully, then held one out for Adam. Adam stared at it in surprise before taking it. 

“Why don’t you get a tray?” Gansey asked after a moment, nodding towards him and Adam. “Both of you. Let the small boy eat his own food.” Standing up, he motioned for Ronan and Adam to do the same. Ronan breathed through his nose before biting down on his last potato, then standing like Gansey had ordered. 

After telling Matthew they’d be right back, Gansey lead them to the back of the lunch line. He turned to Ronan with a stern expression, and Ronan tried not to look away. Having Gansey angry or upset with him always made Ronan want to drop to his knees and beg for forgiveness. “What?” he asked after a minute, narrowing his eyes. “Stop looking at me like that.” 

“How is he?” Gansey asked suddenly, putting a hand on his hip. “Matthew. Is he alright?” 

Ronan stared at Gansey in confusion, leaning forward to glance over at Matthew. He was turned in his seat, talking to a boy that looked around his age. What did Gansey mean? Of course Matthew was alright. He looked happy, and he was eating. Why wouldn’t he be alright? Ronan glanced over at Adam to see if he understood the question, but the taller boy seemed just as lost as he was. 

“What are you talking about?” Ronan asked, looking at Gansey and back at Matthew, trying to see what he was seeing. 

“Just… Is he doing okay? I know he’s been through a lot, I’m just making sure he’s alright.” Gansey replied, lifting his hand to put in on Ronan’s shoulder. He thought better of it, hovering it instead between them for a few seconds before he brought it down. He rubbed his thumb against his lip instead, anticipating Ronan’s answer.

Ronan’s eyebrows knitted together, a small dimple forming between the crease. “He’s fine, I guess,” he said, shrugging a little. Gansey’s concern worried him. What if Matthew wasn’t okay, and he just wasn’t telling him? “He’d tell me if he wasn’t, wouldn’t he? And he hasn’t, so that means he’s alright.” 

Ronan knew it was a lie, knew that he had told Gansey plenty of times that he was fine when he wasn’t. Matthew wasn’t like him though, and it was impossible for the young boy to hold in his emotions. Every time he was sad, Declan and Ronan both knew without Matthew having to say anything. Same with when he was angry, scared, or even nervous. 

“He trusts you, he’s not going to keep anything from you..” Adam said, the sincerity in his voice making Ronan look over at him. Once he did, guilt stirred in his chest. He wanted to tell Adam that just because Matthew trusted him, it didn’t mean he didn’t keep secrets. But he bit down on his tongue and swallowed back his emotions, nodding to Gansey. 

“Move up, Dick,” he said, smirking slightly when Gansey gave him an annoyed look. Though Ronan didn’t want to dwell on the topic, he couldn’t help but wonder if what Gansey said was true. He would have to force himself to be civil enough to ask Declan about it. The mere thought of talking to Declan like he used to do made Ronan angry, and he didn’t even notice the line diminishing until Adam nudged his shoulder.

The three boys took turns grabbing what they wanted before returning to their table. Ronan had got an extra slice of pizza for Matthew, not missing the disapproving look the cook was giving him. He managed a sneer in her way before Gansey was shoving him forward. Once they returned to the table, Matthew’s head snapped forward, greeting them all with a bright smile. The conversation Matthew was having with the other Aglionby boy was forgotten as he glanced down at the pizza on Ronan’s tray. With a small smile, Ronan picked it up and dropped it in top of the crust from Matthew’s first slace. Adam and Gansey exchanged looks, feeling as if they were intruding. 

Immediately, Matthew lifted the pizza and shoved it into his mouth. “This tastes /so/ good,” he moaned, crumbs spilling out of the side of his mouth. He moved his legs from underneath himself so that he was sat properly again. He quickly swallowed his first mouthful and took another bite, making a face when Gansey began wiping his mouth with a napkin.

“You might want to slow down, or else you’ll choke.” Gansey warned, peering over his glasses. Ronan had to fight the urge to tell him that Matthew was /his/ brother, and that he was perfectly capable of taking care of him by himself, but he didn’t want to upset Gansey. He knew that it wasn’t a rational thing to get angry about, Gansey was only looking out for him after all, but then again, there were a lot of irrational things Ronan got angry about. 

Matthew, who was a carefree as always, bobbed his head as he continued eating. It was life he didn’t hear Gansey at all, and Ronan smirked a little when he heard Gansey’s sigh. He watched his brother, noticing how happy he looked right now. Ronan dreaded the day that he would inevitably have to tell him about how really came into the world, wondering if it would break him. He imagined how his face would fall, how the innocence that made him so /him/ would be lost, how he’d resent Ronan for making him a creature so different to everybody else. 

When Matthew noticed Ronan lost in thought, he put his finger in front of his face and snapped them. “Your head is a dangerous place,” he said, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand. “Don’t stay in there for too long.” It was just a joke, but it was enough to make Ronan tense. His younger brother didn’t know the half of the dangers held inside his head, and he hoped he could keep it that way. 

Ronan still hadn’t replied, and Matthew went to snap his fingers again before Ronan grabbed his hand, lighter than he would have done to anyone else. “That sounds like something Declan would say. Don’t be gross.” Though he had just insulted their older brother, Matthew continued to smile. It was difficult to decipher the times when Matthew /wasn’t/ smiling. His presence was so uplifting and warm that whenever he wasn’t smiling, it felt like the end of the world had arrived. That was the case for Ronan, at least. He released Matthew’s hand and picked up his own slice of pizza.

“Are you free this weekend?” Ronan asked, his mouth full. It was clear to see where Matthew had picked up his eating habits from. 

Matthew licked his lips, savouring the taste of the pizza even though he still had a couple of bites left. “Yeah, I’m totally free! What do you want to do?” he replied, his eagerness ever present in his voice. 

“Don’t you have homework to do?” Gansey asked before Ronan could reply. The question was directed towards both Matthew /and/ Ronan. He knew Matthew had the same willingness to do his homework as Ronan did, which was extremely little. 

Ronan shot Gansey an unappreciative look. He didn’t get to spend much time with his brother these days and he wasn’t going to let something as unimportant as homework come between them. 

“Homework can wait.” Ronan countered, ignoring the disapproving looks of Adam and Gansey in preference for the grin on Matthew’s face. "Or homework can be ignored altogether." This statement earned him another kick, and he wasn't sure if it came from Adam or Gansey this time, nor did he care. He gave his brother a small smirk before finishing the last of his pizza. 

"Declan will make me do homework when I get back home," Matthew said, taking his final bite. He chewed it slowly, then turned to Gansey after he had swallowed. "Why didn't you get pizza? Pizza is great! You always eat pizza. Like, every day. I wish I could eat pizza everyday like you all do, but Declan wants me to start eating healthy. But I'm not going to." He made a face and looked up at Adam. "Do you like pizza?" 

Before Adam had a chance to reply, the bell rang, bringing lunch to an end. Matthew's lips tugged into a frown as he watched everyone around them gather their things to leave. Ronan didn't like the sight of Matthew frowning, so he stood up, keeping his tray on the table. 

"What classes do you have now?" Ronan asked, ignoring Gansey's warning expression. "I don't need to go to my last three. And I'm sure there's nothing you can't make up, so come on. Let's go get more pizza." 

Matthew’s eyes lit up, but his response was hesitant. “I can miss my classes today and catch up during the weekend, I think, but Declan will kill me if he finds out…” He chewed on his bottom lip. He did not want to upset Declan, but he also didn’t want to miss out on spending time with Ronan. Matthew mulled it over in his head for a few moments, long enough that Ronan began growing impatient. He breathed through his nostrils, doing it a couple times until Matthew looked up with worried eyes.

Ronan ran a hand over his head before sitting back down. “Look,” he started, interrupting whatever Matthew was about to say, “missing one afternoon of classes won’t hurt, and who cares what Declan thinks?” He raised an eyebrow, his mouth forming a rebellious smirk, urging Matthew to do the same. Matthew bit his lips some more before they split into a wide smile, all of his perfectly white teeth showing. He nodded, tucking a golden curl behind his ear.

“That’s the spirit,” Ronan said, smirking over at Gansey. He waited until Matthew was standing next to him before putting his arms loosely around his shoulders. “See you all later.” Before Gansey could tell them to stop, or before Adam could make Ronan stop, he lead his younger brother out of the cafeteria and outside. 

Once they were inside the BMW, he turned the keys, starting the car. After a minute of driving, Matthew switched on the radio. Unlike Declan, Ronan didn’t sing along with Matthew, but also unlike Declan, he turned the music up full blast and let Matthew sing as loudly as he wanted all the way to the pizza parlor. He concluded that both of his brothers were as different from each other as they could be, but both had qualities so similar that Matthew couldn’t help but smile to himself.


End file.
